A Reason to Visit
by SuperbSaiyan
Summary: The Alola Region's champion takes advantage of a reason to spend time in another region. Lightsunshipping fluff with little substance. NOTE: There were some formatting issues. I believe they have been fixed.
1. The Reason

Passing through it felt strange in a way that could not be described. Even though this was not the first time, being in the wormhole was like existing in a place that had no space, no semblance of the passage of time. Despite the vast distance that separated his destination from his starting point, the mode of transport he took gave no feeling of motion.

All was silent.

All was still.

The sole sensation came from underneath. All of the champion's senses were null, and his surroundings seemed nonexistent. The only thing he could feel was the full metal body on which he sat. Aside from Solgaleo, in this void, Sun was alone with his thoughts. The reason for his visit and the events leading up to it were the only things that would come to mind.

"There is a reason I'm going," Sun told himself. After taking his place as Alola's first champion, after a heartfelt farewell at the Marina, Sun was met with a strange visitor inviting him to a meeting at a roadside hotel. This was the start of his mission to capture the Ultra Beasts. Once all of the Beasts in Alola were safely contained within balls, however, a concerning piece of information was shared.

"There is some indication that there may be Ultra Beasts appearing in other regions," said the Interpol agent as he handed Sun another Beast Ball. Looker had asked Sun to meet him once more at the secluded motel room. "Anabel and I will leave for Unova tomorrow." Looker paused and glanced at Sun's bag. Sun, on the other hand, continued to look his colleague in the eyes, a visible anxiety mounting in the young trainer's face. "We've already asked very much of you, Champion. You have ties to this region now, and we can't expect you to take on the full-time responsibility of taking care of other regions. Thanks to the information you collected on the Ultra Beasts with your Pokédex, the International Police will be able to handle the issue from here on out." Sun nodded, but Looker continued to speak. "I believe any Ultra Beasts will come find us without too much effort. They will be drawn to the energy emanating from Anabel. But the same is true for you, Sun. As you have passed through the Ultra Wormhole before, if you for any reason go to another region, Ultra Beasts there will be likely to find you."

He was not eager to travel to faraway regions to once again bait out otherworldly abominations, but Sun was able to piece together that a threat might emerge in Kanto if Ultra Beasts were drawn to those who have gone through the wormhole. He felt a visceral reaction of concern when Looker told him about this, but now, in the midst of emptiness which produced nothing that could distract him, Sun knew that this was just an excuse. He had never considered traveling through the Ultra Wormhole to another region with Solgaleo. But now, finally with a reason to go there, the champion recalled how his Pokémon — his friend — had torn a passageway into another world. "Surely," Sun thought, "if he can travel between worlds, he can get to another region."

"I'm telling you this as a warning. But you deserve to know that the evidence we have of Beasts appearing in other regions is far from certain. Nonetheless, our unit of the International Police has an obligation to look into the situation, however unlikely a threat may actually be," The jacketed detective had told Sun just as he stepped out of the room.

Of course, being champion came with responsibilities of its own, too. Hau was the first. On an otherwise uneventful day after Looker left, Sun had received a call summoning him to the summit of Mt. Lanakila. Once he sat himself at the Pokémon League's final arena, Sun's first rival came forward to challenge him. Hau's team had become much stronger, especially his now-evolved starter, but Sun was able to defend his title. After that came Gladion. Then Molayne. One after another challengers strived for Sun's title, usually a few days after the last. Some faces were familiar, some were not. Every battle, however, ended in the same way: the champion would hold onto his reputation as the region's strongest trainer. For a while, Sun had wanted to leave Alola. Not permanently, only to visit other regions, like the champions there had done before. Even now, for example, the former champions of Kanto, Blue and Red, were in Alola. As was Sinnoh's Cynthia. With the legendary Solgaleo as his transport, Sun departed.

Suddenly, Sun again felt the flow of time. His senses returned, as well as his feeling of position. Still fully aware of the thoughts he had contemplated in that strange plane, Sun appeared in the midst of a cool, blue sky. As though awakening from a dream, the crisp, cool wind greeted Sun, nipping at his skin. He felt as though no time at all had passed since he and Solgaleo entered the wormhole back in Alola, as though the entire journey had taken place only in an instant. With Sun still on his back, Solgaleo descended under the bright midday sun, letting his trainer dismount onto a wooden bridge. Once his feet were planted steadily on the planks below, Sun looked around to take in his surroundings.

"Yep," he thought, "this is Kanto all right." In front of him was a suburban town at the end of the bridge, and beyond that, a towering cityscape loomed in the distance. Only now did Sun realize how close he was to a populated area, and that the sudden appearance of an eighteen-foot-tall legendary being from a hole in the sky might have drawn attention. However, the people of Kanto must have been used to godly powers flying about, as there was not one sign that the city's inhabitants found this event unusual. The only response to their sudden appearance was the fleeing of several wild Abra that were lounging nearby. Sun turned around to see where the bridge led. He saw that the wooden platform joined the city to a grassy route, stretching over a river that flowed towards the mountainside. The currents of water led to a black crevice carved into the wall of rock that bounded the city. As Sun strained his eyes to see through the maze of hedges that extended down the route, a sudden roar shook his core.

"LA-LIONA!" The trainer turned his head to the left to see Solgaleo standing beside him, facing his rear. The lion's anxious gaze was focused behind Sun, toward the city. As the echo of Solgaleo's roar died down, frantic footsteps became audible.

"So maybe we _did_ draw some attention to ourselves," thought Sun. He turned to face in the same direction as Solgaleo. As he did so, smile forced its way onto the champion's lips, etching itself across his face.

A lively figure, draped in white, stepped onto the bridge as though lifted by the wind that blew back a tail of goldenrod from its crown. Sun's gaze was drawn to the nearing pair of barely watering eyes, but was then captivated by the sunlight reflected off of two small emblems pinned to this person's collar. She continued to run toward Sun's place on the bridge until close enough to speak.

"You two are still shining so brightly," shouted the girl in an emphatic lightness of tone. Sun was overcome with a feeling of disbelief, unsure if the scenario playing out before him was as it seemed.

"Lillie," he said, as though saying her name would somehow assure him that their meeting was truly happening. She continued on to the center of the bridge where Sun stood beside Solgaleo. There, they embraced, kept warm by the glow of the radiant sun.


	2. Reunion

The city stayed silent. It appeared almost ashamed to speak in front of the elated youths. Without a sound, Sun held Lillie close to him on the bridge, the two of them stayed sheltered from the wind by Solgaleo's steel body. They stayed silent long enough for a Slowpoke to cross the bridge, each thinking only of the other's presence. With his arms still around her, Sun was the first to break the silence.

"I've missed you," he said. Lillie's arms held on tighter as her heart sped up.

"I missed you, too," she said. "I missed you so, so much."

Sun moved his hand close to Lillie's shoulder and placed his finger on the metal pins that she wore on her collar. As he felt the cold, smooth metal, he smiled and said, "it looks like you've been doing well here. I know you said you were going to get stronger."

"Yes!" Lillie replied gleefully. She lifted the strap of her backpack over her shoulder and placed the bag on the ground in front of her. "Sun," she said, visibly excited, "I want you to meet my team!" Lillie unzipped the bag and reached in, pulling out three plain Pokéballs. Each one released a different Pokémon, leaving Sun standing in front of the three. One red, one yellow, one pink.

"This is Liza," Lillie said as she pointed to a Charmander, "she was the first Pokémon I got when I came to Kanto." She took a step and placed one hand down on the Abra. "This is Telemachus. And this," she picked up the last Pokémon — a Jigglypuff — in both hands, "is Luna."

"Whoa," Sun said while looking from one Pokémon to the next, "you sure have been busy."

"I have been busy, and as I think you saw, I already got my first two badges!" Lillie pulled the bit of cloth holding the proof of her victories forward a little bit to show them off. Sun smiled at seeing how well his friend has been doing.

"That really is great, although," he started, "you came to Kanto to look for someone, right?"

"Yeah," Lillie said, "Bill." She lifted an arm to point behind Sun. "He lives not too far in that direction. I was just on my way there when…" she paused. Before Sun could start speaking, Lillie wrapped her arms around him again. "I'm so glad you're here." After a moment more of comfort, she continued, "why don't we go see him now?"

Once Solgaleo was back in his Pokéball, it was a short walk to Bill's house. He lived in a small building. Wooden, with only one floor. His house stood in the middle of a small field in a break between the rocks. The flat earth surrounding it was green with ankle-high grass. All alone like it was, Bill's house looked like it could have been the last human dwelling in the world, so long as the buildings of Cerulean City could not be seen. Sun knocked on the thin wooden door. From within, he could hear someone faintly say, "it's open!"

The inside of the house did not match its rustic exterior. Most of the space was occupied by one large room with a small washroom off to the side. Plain white sheets covered a mattress in the corner. One wall was covered along its length by blocky-looking computers. The other was obscured by gadgets that looked like they were from another world. All across the floor lay stray parts and wires that seemed to form a network of foreign hieroglyphs. Bent over a desk in the far corner, opposite the mattress, was a thin man with curly hair, his hands working as though alive on their own. He showed no signs of acknowledgment as Sun and Lillie entered the cluttered house. Without lifting himself from his desk, the man greeted his guests.

"Welcome," he said, "I am Bill."


	3. Hope in Ruins

"I see," Bill said to his two visitors. "And you're hoping that I can remove the toxins?" Sun and Lillie had taken the time to tell Bill, who was still bent over at his desk, about the series of events leading up to their arrival.

"That's right," answered Lillie. "Please. Can you help us?"

"Well…" started Bill, before pausing in a moment of consideration. He lifted himself up from his dingy seat and turned from his desk to face Lillie and Sun for the first time. "I cannot," he said.

Lillie recoiled as though Bill's answer had literally struck her. "No…" she muttered, "Mother…."

"I'm sorry," Bill continued, "but the truth is that my fusion with a Pokémon was by complete accident, and my separation from it was by complete luck." After hearing this explanation, her eyes began to moisten. As though she were being drained of strength, Lillie swayed before leaning against Sun in order to stay upright. Although Sun harbored some personal animosity toward Lusamine over past events, this display of suffering was enough to tear at his heart. He put one arm around her and felt her chest heave forcefully and unsteadily. He wasn't in an Ultra wormhole, but time seemed to slow to a standstill.

There was Lillie. Helpless and in pain. And there was Sun, desperately wishing for a way to help her. That was it. The rest of the world appeared to fade away into some unseen void. In fact, it was like this back before, too, when Nebby, now Solgaleo, had first evolved into Cosmoem. They were powerless. If there were any course of action Sun or Lillie could have taken to help the Protostar, it was not obvious. Lillie had hoped that she could help Nebby by bringing him to the Ruins.

"The Ruins," Sun thought to himself. "Hey, Bill," he called, still having little success at comforting Lillie, "you developed the PC system, didn't you?"

"I sure did." Bill acted either uncaring or oblivious to the sensitive situation unfolding in front of him, as he boasted his accomplishment proudly.

More motivated than ever, Sun's mind was working with unprecedented lucidity. "Could you access the Alolan PC system from here?"

"Sure can," Bill smiled, sounding pleased with himself.

Sun lifted one hand to Lillie's cheek, catching a single teardrop as it trickled down her face. "Lillie…" he said in a hushed tone, "do you remember, back then? When we took Nebby to the Ruins?"

Lillie froze before responding. "The Ruins?" She looked up at Sun. "You mean… Tapu Fini?"

"That's right." Lillie began to think along the same lines as Sun. Realizing this, he smiled. "After you left, I went back to the Ruins of Hope."

"I remember we were there once. And then you caught Tapu Koko at the Ruins of Conflict. I was with you then." The memory of that night, the celebration, the fireworks, the smiles on everyone's faces, helped to ease the mood in the room, even if only slightly.

"I'll admit that I was never able to find the Ruins of Abundance, but I at least managed to catch Tapu Fini." He held Lillie close as he talked. "I think it can help here." To suggest using a guardian deity to heal Lusamine, after she had threatened Alola by unleashing the Ultra Beasts, seemed paradoxical. Still, Sun felt a need. "She might not deserve it," Sun thought to himself, "but even more than that, Lillie doesn't deserve to suffer." He lifted his head to look at his host. "Bill, start up the PC."

The water came out a brilliant tone. It was clear, like any water, but seemed to glow just faintly as it flowed with a purity unlike anything the trainers had seen before. The source of the water, the Land Spirit Pokémon, Tapu Fini, had come over through Bill's PC. From there, it was only a short walk to the Cerulean City hotel at which Lillie had been staying. When the water made contact with Lusamine, who lay still as stone, its brightness faded. A strange, ominous ink leeched from her body into the fluid, turning it from its initial clear to the same black that filled the dark cave beside the Nugget Bridge. It emptied into a basin and then started to evaporate. Once all of the mystic water had dripped off of Lusamine's body, she began to stir.

Upon seeing her long-unconscious mother move, Lillie lit up as though a switch had been flipped. "That's a good sign, don't you think so?" She hopefully asked Sun for his thoughts.

"Yeah. I think so." He said. A little uneasy that she might be back to her old self soon.

"It's all right." Sun's voice must have conveyed his concern. "She doesn't have any power in the Aether Foundation anymore. There's nothing to worry about."

Lusamine continued to lie still. Sun and Lillie looked on, waiting to see if she would show any more signs of a response to Tapu Fini. She only lay. She lay, and she continued to be watched. After an amount of time that felt as though beyond measurement had passed, though she would not move, she opened her mouth.

"Gladion…" the unconscious woman muttered. "Lillie…"

Sun's face showed an expression of utter shock. Lillie, on the other hand, held an expression that fell completely blank. Unsure of what else to do, she knelt down beside her mother. Lillie opened her mouth, but no words came. She motioned as if trying her words were being blocked by some unseen force. She closed her eyes, not knowing how to process what she saw. With a bit of effort, she managed one word. "Mother…."

Sun watched on in silence. Anything he could say would not help. Not now.

Amidst the weight of the situation, the somber atmosphere was sliced as though by a knife when a harsh knocking propagated through the air. Along with the sound of fist on wood, a loud voice forced its way into the room.

"Open the door! This is the International Police!"


	4. Elicitation

He was a man of odd appearance, gaunt, and almost as tall as the doorway. His eyes were shielded by shades that shone brightly from the sunlight they reflected. Atop his head, he showed off a hairstyle that demanded the attention of any who saw it. His hair was arranged into an afro four times the size of his head, split down the middle between two colors. To one side, it was the deep crimson of rubies. On the other side, his hair was a pure, clean white. Behind him stood two Ludicolo, nearly still, but nervously twitching their feet as though wishing to move. He looked as though he were barely human, and had an odd aura about him. Sun was expecting Looker, but this man did not match any expectations. Being in his presence induced a strange sensation of rhythm, as though listening to loud music, but unable to hear it. He wouldn't be easy to forget.

He came demanding to take Lusamine with him. He said that she had committed a crime against humanity, and that she would need to answer to her actions when she recovers. She would be safe, he assured them, but she would not escape due process. Her trial will take place once she has recovered. The sentence, he said, would likely mean that she would not see the outside world for many years. He wheeled in a cot, refusing to take "no" for an answer, and left with the former Aether Foundation president.

He had long since left. Now, the man was gone. Now, Lusamine was gone. Now, Lillie lay in the bed that had held her mother. Sun sat beside her.

"Bill…" she muttered.

"It's not his fault," responded Sun. "That place was full of computers, Interpol probably was listening through one of them." She didn't respond.

The two of them were silent as they occupied the oppressive room and its still atmosphere that stagnated like a marsh in Summer. As the sun set, the light streaming through the window became weaker and weaker, and the room got darker and darker. Though the room fell totally dark, no one turned on a light.

Day had become evening, and before long, evening had become night. The room was dark, and still, no one moved. Eventually, when no light remained, Sun stood up. Carefully, he placed a hand on Lillie's shoulder, who was still lying still on the bed. She was facing the wall against which the bed was pressed, away from Sun. There was no telling whether or not she was still awake. Sun arched his back, leaning down to position his face near hers.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. She still didn't respond. Sun pressed his lips against her cheek for a moment before pulling away. "Sleep well." He lay on the floor, beside the bed.

Sun opened his eyes to find the room filling with the dawn's golden light. Looking around, he recalled what had happened the day before. He stood up to find Lillie lying exactly where she had been, showing no signs of stirring. Now, with the sun illuminating her face, Sun could see that she was asleep. She lay in the same spot, appearing to have not moved at all throughout the night. Sun sat down on the edge of the bed next to her has he had the day before, and he waited for her to wake up. One could count the moments that passed before Lillie opened her eyes to be met with the same sight that greeted Sun when he had woken up. She looked around a little before turning onto her back to face up at Sun.

He locked his eyes with hers and waited for her to speak. She did not. "Lillie," Sun uttered, barely audible.

"Sun…" she replied, "what do I do now?" A momentary silence followed before Sun twisted his trunk and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"You said you were traveling to Kanto to become stronger," Sun spoke louder now, "that's what you do."

"But…" Her voice had become unsteady.

"When we were on Exeggutor Island, taking refuge from the rain in that cave, I remember you said something to me. You told me that you were impressed that I would do something when you felt stuck. When you said that, I was impressed. I was impressed by how you continued to see the good, no matter what. How you always looked forward. If what you said was true, then do something."

"What do I do, though?" Her voice had become more engaging, as though she were now a more willing participant of the conversation than before.

Sun paused to think for just a moment, then spoke. "If there's anything we can learn from your mother's actions, I think it's that we can only go forward. Trying to go backward will lead us to ruin. I know that you can go forward from here." He moved his hand in order to touch the two gym badges Lillie was still wearing. "You already won against two gym leaders. I know you can beat another six." Lillie raised her hand to clasp Sun's.

When he finished speaking, the Pokéball in his bag burst open, revealing a grand feline creature that barely fit in the room.  
"LA-LIONA!" Solgaleo would not let the conversation exclude him.

Lillie looked at the Pokémon she had rescued months ago and said to him, "Nebby, I'm sorry if I'm disappointing you."

His heart began to beat faster and faster. His mind started to work quickly, too. Sun thought, going over the situation in his head multiple times each second before deciding that this would be as good a time as any for him to speak.

Sun opened his mouth and, after a quiet second, forced out the words he wanted to say. While still looking Lillie in the eyes, he said, "I love you."

At hearing his confession, Lillie sat up on the bed, forcing Sun's hand, which was still on her badges, upward. In response, she said, "when we first met, all three of us, by the bridge, I remember feeling the same way. I remember feeling that I wanted to be with you. I remember feeling the same way I do now." She crossed her arms around Sun's back and then continued to speak. "I will become stronger. I will become the champion."


	5. Return

Passing through still felt strange, although by now, he had gotten used to it. The Alolan champion made frequent visits to Kanto to check on his friend's progress in between his bouts to defend his title. His last visit had taken place after her seventh gym battle. She had just exited the gym, and her new badge was still warm from the Vulcan heat of the gym's arena. It was the first battle to take place in the newly-reopened Cinnabar Island Gym.

"I'll see you again, won't I?" She asked, her face showing hope and happiness.

"Of course," Sun answered. His next sentence seemed to emanate from his chest by its own will. In a voice that bent to the will of Sun's words, he said, "I will subjugate time and space itself if I have to." The sound of his promise reached Lillie, whose expression showed that it had moved her. On his Pokémon's back, Sun then returned to Alola.

The time came for another visit. Solgaleo always had a special intuition. Every time he would travel through the wormhole, he would know where to emerge. Each time, Sun never found himself more than a city away from the person whom he so badly wanted to see. This time, however, Sun's senses returned to him in a place that seemed unfamiliar.

When Solgaleo landed, Sun found himself outside a mansion which sat upon the flat top of a tall mountain, the size of which dwarfed even the Grand Hano Resort back in Alola. Behind him was the mouth of a cave that descended from the plateau, and all along the path between its opening and the grand building's entrance were trainers and their Pokémon. Each one looked skilled. On one of them, Sun could discern eight sparkling emblems pinned to his lapel. Sun's first thought was not to wonder where he was. But where, he wondered, was Lillie.

Solgaleo suddenly turned itself around to face the door of the giant mansion, and on seeing this, Sun followed suit. The doors opened, and the one who exited them barely took an instant to notice who was waiting for her outside. As she had done many times before, she ran smiling at Sun, throwing her arms out in embrace upon reaching him.

"Sun! I have great news, "she said in a voice that could not mask her excitement. Sun placed his hands on her shoulders, anticipating in baited breath what she would say next. With her hands still around him, she exclaimed, "I've won against the Elite Four! And Lance, too!"

Sun smiled in excitement, but not in surprise. "Congratulations," he said, "I'm so glad!" He tried to stifle a joyous laugh, failed, and shouted out loud. "You're the champion!"

The victorious trainer nodded, smiling all the while, and then said, "that's not all!" She pulled a Pokéball out of the side pocket on her backpack. "Do you remember the 'gift' you left me with?" Sun nodded, recalling the memento he had brought from the Lake of the Moone in Alola. As Lillie pressed the button on the Pokéball, she said to Sun, "it evolved!"

A bright light emerged from the ball before coalescing into a tall creature that resembled a bat. Its features were feminine and reminiscent of the soft light of the full moon and of the harsh shadows it creates. Its wings were the color of the night sky and sparkled like the stars therein. Upon seeing this creature appear, Solgaleo let out a roar.

"LA-LIONA!"

As if responding in conversation, the bat-like Pokémon reacted to Solgaleo.

"MAHINA-PEA!"

As the two became acquainted, and as the onlooking trainers grew more and more intrigued, Lillie giggled bemusedly. "I'm glad you and Nebby get along!" She turned her attention from the legendary duo back to Sun. "The eighth gym leader… He said he came back to his gym as a favor for some strong trainer in Alola. By any chance, was that you?"

"That's right," Sun said, "Blue came to Alola to take part in the Battle Tree."

"Battle Tree?" Lillie asked.

Sun nodded and said, "That's right. It's a challenge in Alola for the region's strongest trainers, and even trainers from other regions, too."

An amusing thought bubbled to the surface of Lillie's mind when she heard this. As it broke the surface, she asked Sun, "We're both champions. Do you think we could take on the challenge?"

Sun smiled but said nothing. Instead, he pulled Kanto's champion close to that of Alola. The corners of his mouth curved up, and his eyes locked with hers. Their gaze was deep, and as he looked on, the rest of the world could have faded away, but Sun would not have noticed. As though in a wormhole, the only thing the champion could acknowledge was the presence of the champion of another region. Their faces came close, until the warm breath of one tickled the lips of the other. Sun closed his eyes. Lillie did the same. Warmed and excited by feeling the life of his partner, their lips met.

The horde of skilled trainers that topped the mountain looked on as Nebby and Lunala played, and as the champions kissed outside the Inidigo Plateau. Their lips slowly pulled apart. As Sun opened his eyes, he asked, "are you ready?"

Lillie opened her eyes, smiled, and nodded. The emissaries of Sunne and Moone ascended together, following a choreography about each other such that they appeared to dance through the sky. As they moved, a hole appeared in the sky, loosing a soft, blue glow.

Somewhere outside of space, the champions embrace in the glow of the radiant sun.

Somewhere beyond time, the trainers kiss in the light of the full moon.


End file.
